Matthew 6 Devotional Bible Study

To be Honored by Others…

Is there anything wrong with giving to the needy? Or praying? Or fasting?

No, those are good things. Jesus calls them acts of righteousness. Another way to put it is that those are right things to do. If you are righteous, you will show it by doing those things.

But one of the main themes in Matthew 6 is that we are not to do our acts of righteousness simply to be seen and honored and admired by others. If the only reason we’re giving or praying or fasting is for other people to see us doing it and think well of us, their admiration is the only reward we’ll ever get.

But if we do those good things as a private matter between ourselves and God, not caring if other people see us or not, God will reward us for doing those acts of righteousness.

What is the reward God gives us for giving to others? Or praying? Or fasting? The inner reward of knowing we’ve done right and that God approves of us, that He’s proud of us. Those acts of righteousness also teach me how to be righteous. Giving helps me to be less selfish as I care for others’ needs. Praying teaches me to communicate with and rely on God. Fasting teaches me self-control over my bodily desires.

So, is there anything wrong with praying in a group? Or your church treasurer seeing your name of a check and knowing you’ve given an offering? Or letting others know you’re fasting so that they can encourage you, and you can encourage them in the practice?

There’s nothing wrong with doing these things with other people, but you need to do them humbly, not to show off and be honored by others.

Why should I not want to be honored by others for my acts of righteousness? Because rather than wanting people to honor me, I should be wanting them to honor God. My life and any acts of righteousness I do should be about pointing others to God, not myself.

Jesus even exemplified this. In Luke 8:39, for example, after Jesus cast a legion of demons out of a man, He said, “Return home and tell how much God has done for you.” Do you see? He could have said, “Go tell everyone how great I am for healing you,” but instead He wanted all the glory to go to His Father.

If you think you have a tendency to be prideful about the good things you do, a great idea would be to stop doing those things in the knowledge of others and do them only privately until you feel like you can be more humble in sharing your spiritual practices.

 

Prayer Practice

Matthew 6:7 – “And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words.”

Why does Jesus say that the pagans babble when they pray? He says they babble because they think their god will hear them if they use a lot of words.

Why does God hear our prayers? Because He’s a good Father who cares about our needs and listens to His children when we talk to Him. We can come to Him with short, simple requests, not trying to make our prayers sound eloquent as if we need to get His attention by continuing to talk or impressing Him with eloquent speeches.

The Lord’s Prayer itself is very short and to the point, and it serves as a model for the types of things we can pray for.

Try praying it like this:

 

Our Father in heaven… What comes to mind when you think about the concept that you have a Heavenly Father?

 

Hallowed be your name… What is one thing you can praise God for today?

 

Your kingdom come… Imagine what it will be like when we are living fully in God’s Kingdom. What’s one aspect of living in that kingdom that you’re looking forward to?

 

Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven… What is God’s will? What does He want to happen? Can you pray that you want that too?

 

Give us today our daily bread… What other needs do you have today? Do you believe God can meet those needs?

 

And forgive us our debts… What sins have you committed today that you need to ask forgiveness for? They can be sins against God in your thoughts or actions, or things you’ve done to wrong other people.

 

As we also have forgiven our debtors… Is there anyone you need to forgive today?

 

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one… What temptations have you been feeling lately? Do you believe your Heavenly Father can help you resist those desires?

 

Do I Need to Forgive Others for God to Forgive Me?

Matthew 6:14-15 – “For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”

Do you have to forgive other people in order for God to forgive you?

Yes, forgiving others is a command. It’s not optional. We have to do it. Even when we don’t want to. Even when that other person hurt us really badly.

But there are some caveats in Scripture. What if the other person doesn’t ask you to forgive them? What if the other keeps doing the wrong thing? Do you still have to forgive them?

Well, does God forgive you if you don’t ask Him to? He offers us forgiveness through Christ, but we’re not actually forgiven until we ask for and accept that forgiveness.

In the same way, Jesus says in Luke 17:3-4, “If your brother or sister sins against you, rebuke them; and if they repent, forgive them. Even if they sin against you seven times in a day and seven times come back to you saying ‘I repent,’ you must forgive them.”

There seems to be the condition that the person repents. They might keep doing the same things, but if each time they sincerely apologize and turn from that action, we have to forgive them. If they don’t repent – just like if you don’t ask God for forgiveness – there’s no obligation on our part or on God’s to forgive.

But what if the person dies, or they can’t contact you for some other reason, to tell you they’re sorry? Should you forgive them then or not?

Even if the person can’t or never does apologize, you can still let go of the anger and hurt you feel. You can heal and don’t have to hold on to past hurts. You don’t have to hold a grudge or carry ill-will toward someone. You can let it go. 

 

How Does Satan Trick You into Thinking You’ve Committed the Sin of Unforgiveness?

Matthew 6:15 - Jesus said, “If you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”

But how do you know if you’ve forgiven someone or not? You need to think about what unforgiveness looks like. Unforgiveness is not the same as still feeling angry or hurt. Unforgiveness is not feeling unable to trust the person who sinned against you.

Unforgiveness is wanting that person to be punished. It’s wanting God to condemn them and send them to Hell. In contrast, forgiveness is wanting them to experience God’s grace.

So, what is your posture toward the person who hurt you? Do you want them to go to Hell? Or do you want God to change them in the same way He’s changed you?

I’m willing to bet you still feel pain when you think about that person, but you don’t want them to be condemned for eternity. You have more love in your heart than to want that. But Satan wants you to think that if you’re still angry or hurt, you haven’t forgiven the person. The truth is you have forgiven them, but you’re simply still feeling the effects of what they did, and that might not be fully healed until you meet Jesus face-to-face.

 

Treasures in Heaven

Matthew 6:19-21 - “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Storing up… It’s different from saving. When you save, you’re saving up for something specific: a house, a car, your kid’s education, retirement, etc. But when you “store up,” that’s the end goal. You don’t want to use it; you just want to collect it and see how much you can get.

On earth, everything you “store up” will either be lost or used, or you’ll die and leave it to someone else to lose or use. But if you spend your money or time or energy for the Kingdom of God, you will personally enjoy the results for eternity. So if you want to “store up,” focus on what you’ll actually be able to keep.

 

Worrying is Worthless

Matthew 6:31-33 - "So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”

To worry means to chew on something, and to keep chewing on it, like a tough piece of meat. It’s like you keep chewing on it and don’t feel like you’re making any progress. You just keep working it and can’t break it down enough to swallow it.

Jesus isn’t saying not to think about your problems, or prepare against something going wrong, or take steps to provide for yourself. He’s saying to realize that sometimes you can’t solve a problem. You’re not making progress on it. And yet you keep thinking about it and going over and over it with no result other than to wear yourself out, like making your jaw tired working that piece of meat.

When we can’t solve a problem, what we can do is trust God to solve it. He knows our need. And if we seek to honor Him first and foremost with our lives, He will take care of us. We can put our energy toward building the Kingdom rather than thinking about problems we can’t solve.